ITCM 22 - Beau
Inside the Competitor's Mind 22 - Beau MizVirago and I were excitedly packing for our trip out onto Lake Monroe. I was going to be interviewing Beau and he had offered to take us out on his boat for some water skiing. Since neither of us had ever been water skiing, I’d been enthusiastic. But I was a little uncertain when I asked Beau if Miz could come along. I didn’t want to abuse his hospitality. He’d laughed it off, “I’m sure Miz would love to help babysit my son.” He was right, she’d been ecstatic. So we met them by one of the boat ramps early in the morning. By the time we arrived, he’d already got the boat in the water and was carrying his half-asleep son from the truck to the boat. He looked to be a little over 6 feet tall with blue eyes. He had shaved his hair, but had a goatee. He introduced us to his wife and son, and I laughed when Miz immediately went over to talk to the little boy and somehow coaxed him into her arms. We were finally settled in the boat and Beau started the engine. I watched with delight as we moved smoothly over the sun dappled surface of the lake. Monroe Lake was purchased from the Indians as part of Harrison's Purchase, by the Treaty of Fort Wayne, on September 30,1809. Under the Flood Control Act of 1938, a dam was authorized to be built to flood damages downstream from the dam. The dam is about 10 miles southeast of Bloomington, Indiana, on Salt Creek, a tributary of the East Fork White River. Since its completion, Monroe Lake has prevented more than $38 million in flood damage, or more than twice its original cost of $16.5 million. Now called Lake Monroe, it covers 23,952 acres in total, with Monroe Reservoir itself covering 10,750 acres. “There’s a slalom course in here where the Indiana University water ski club practices. I’m going to a quiet spot where the others can just splash around for a while. We can talk then. ” Beau said as he steered his boat towards his destination. I watched with delight as his son began to chatter enthusiastically about swimming in the lake. And he was perched eagerly, one of his hands in his mother’s, the other in Miz’s, all three ready to jump in when Beau gave the word. I laughed at the amount of spray the three of them made as they splashed into the water. Beau shook his head, grinning at their antics. He grabbed a soda for both of us and we settled down to talk. “Shame I couldn’t get ¢hrome to join us,” he said with a sly grin. And damn if I didn’t immediately blush at that. He laughed at the face I made at him, but he left it at that and continued with the interview. “I am 38 years old, and obviously live in Indiana. I’ve been married 10 years to a wonderful and supportive wife, we have a 3 year old son. As you can tell,” he waved his hand to indicate the boat and the water skis, “I am an outdoorsy type. I like camping and hiking. I travel to Colorado quite frequently to spend time in the mountains. I like snow skiing in the winter there. I do spend most of my weekends here on the lake, either fishing or swimming and water skiing.” “I've been gaming for about 30 years. All the way back to Atari.” He paused, struck with amusement, “The younger generation probably don't even know what that is! Anyway, I played all the major console titles until I began playing cell phone games about 4 or 5 years ago. I played a game called Dark Summoner and Blood Brothers 1. Also dabble in Clash of Clans.” He took a swig of his soda before continuing, “I began BB2 when it was released in the US. I didn't like the direction BB1 was headed and decided to try something new. I like most aspects of the game. There are common unpopular aspects that need tweaking, but the game is new and I like the direction it is headed.” “My ign and forum names are the same and were easily chosen because it’s my real name. I'm a founding Member of LoD (Legion of Doom) . I got together with a small group of friends, plus some people I ran events with from BB1, and together we started LoD when we began to play BB2. It started out in the beginning as a place we could share information as we learned about the game. We already had many top runners from BB1 events so when the announcement about guilds came we made it official.” “Events are what I enjoy the most about these games. The competition to rank high is fun for me. I'm not much of a collector. Daily events are the easiest, just gogogo. During weekly events, I typically lag for the first couple days and then come on heavy at the end. It's often difficult for me to spend a lot of time over 5 or 6 days. I use the new gauntlet event as a challenge to evolve the 5* without using any sigils. The actual events are not very challenging as far as gameplay. That’s probably the one thing I'd like to see changed.” “I’m obviously a heavy p2p player. Even though, as one of the strongest players in the game, I fully support f2p, I still believe their expectations are a little too great. I don't understand how a f2p player can honestly expect to keep up, but I don't think I'm ‘better’ than anyone else just because they either can't or choose not to spend money. I strive to excel and don't much like to hear complaining from those who think they should do as well without the sacrifice.” I asked what kind of changes he’d like to see to make the gameplay more challenging. He took a few moments to ponder the question. “The problem with any changes that would challenge myself and the others at my level is that it would exclude many of the f2p players in our community. If I, or others at my level, find an level challenging, then most will find it impossible and only those able to do it will have a chance to compete for top rank. If they add a level above insane that’s harder but awards the same points, then those who can’t play that level won't be able to score fast enough to keep up so no one will do it. The best idea I can come up with off the top of my head would be to run the event with 2 separate pools of players. Each person would choose the pool they wished to enter. With leaderboards for each pool and corresponding ranks and rewards. You could give out top rewards for top 10 in each instead of top 20. I fear though that many would go the easier route, so I'm not real sure how effective an idea it would be.” “I'll refrain from making comments about my feelings regarding the Mods. I'd prefer to keep the interview fun and lighthearted instead of turning it into a soapbox. I'll leave the subject saying I don't mind being the villain.” He smiled when I raised a skeptical eyebrow, “As hard as it might be for some to believe, I don't much like arguing and conflict. This is only a game after all and I don't typically allow it to affect me in a negative way. We're all trying to enjoy ourselves after all. We in LoD are not as large number wise as SH and WDG but we're a tight group. Most of us have known each other for a while now and I’m probably a little over protective of my guys.” We sat and chatted for a few minutes, until Miz dragged herself back onto the boat, grinning with glee. “Your son’s going to teach me to water ski,” she announced. “He says you take him all the time and he knows how.” I laughed when Beau’s eyebrows shot up in alarm. “Is he even old enough to waterski?” I asked Beau. “No,” he said wryly, “I take him in the inflatable tube, but that’s it.” Both Miz and I burst into peals of laughter. The 3 year old was just absolutely darling, that was clearly what water skiing was to him. Beau grinned, “We can go water skiing, it’s very easy, even if you’ve never been before. Just remember to let go if you fall. Or we can use the tube,” he winked at Miz, “I think it’s the tube for you if you’re going with my son.” She grinned, “Sounds more my speed anyway.” “Alright then. Let’s get everyone aboard, and we’ll do it.” And I spent the rest of the afternoon, on water skis, and shrieking at the top of my voice. It was the best time! Category:Mizy Category:ITCM